Experts probe whale calf death

The Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) is investigating the death of a whale on Queensland's Gold Coast.

The humpback calf was beached about 100 metres north of Tallebudgera Surf Lifesaving Club on Sunday afternoon and was buried nearby yesterday.

DERM spokesman Miles Yeates says veterinarians are studying skin samples taken from the carcass.

"There were no obvious signs of boat strike or rope marks on the animal that would suggest an entanglement or anything like that," he said.

"The whale was fairly young and it has probably separated from its mother after a year or two of being with its mother and it has undertaken the migration on its own or in a different pod for the first time on its own and obviously something untoward has happened and it hasn't made it."

Mr Yeates says the cause of death is unclear.

"It had a few strange little skin conditions covering the animal ... evidence of small shark bites and a parasitic coverage over parts of the carcass, so that's the focus of our investigation into the cause of death at the moment," he said.